Protecting a person's head while in war or playing sports has been a developing science since war, sports and headgear first stated to be created. Please note that one of the goals of the current invention is to limit rotational movement and provide a bracing ability and direct force as well as absorb force. Another goal is to link the head and neck as a single unit. Another goal is to provide an intervention system to identify a significant impact force and announce it so play can be stopped. It is not an invention claiming to prevent closed head injuries but one to assist in limiting the range of motion and to provide support the neck and head which may assist in reducing the acceleration of a movement and hopefully the result will be a reduction in closed head injuries. The goal to increase the safety of the player has not changed. However, current understanding of the factors that cause injury and the types of injuries have improved as mankind strives to understand how injuries occur and how equipment may decrease or negate these injuries. The answer historically as documented in the U.S. Patent data base has been to improve the type of shock absorbent padding or the type of exterior of the helmet that protects the head. This is of great importance because the idea has been to build a better covering for the head and the head alone. With current understanding of traumatic brain injuries and the motion of the brain during a head impact more questions on methods to understand and limit linear and or translational and rotational forces as they impact the brain have arisen. New patents like this one, seek to provide a method to reduce the factors that cause impact trauma but also provide a feature to monitor head impacts. Please note the current invention intent is to monitor impacts on the headgear not in the brain of the player. Also the terms headgear and helmet are used interchangeably.
There are five aspects in the design that the axial rotation control and bracing system and head and neck linking system hope to improve and thereby reduce head injuries: limiting the axis of movement, providing a bracing feature, linking the head and neck as a single unit, transferring energy to the torso of the player, and supporting the head and neck during impact.
One problem encountered in head injuries is the role axial and rotational movement play during head acceleration. In the current invention this problem is addressed by creating the axial rotation control and bracing system. The system is designed to reduce the axis of movement of the head and neck in an attempt to limit translational and rotational forces delivered to the brain during a head impact. By reducing the range of motion the force is given a shorter amount of time to build speed of movement regarding the head because the range of movement has been decreased. This should assist in reducing translational force build up and the eventual transference of this force to the player's brain.
Another problem encountered in head injuries is due to the whiplash movement that takes place when the head is hit. The current invention within the axial rotation control and bracing system provides a method for the wearer to brace themselves for impact. The design of the axial rotation control system also provides shock absorbance during the impact as well as providing a method for bracing for impact. No other headgear has a feature where the wearer can take a preventative measure to help reduce the effect of a blow if they see it coming.
Another problem encountered in head injuries is that traditional headgear(s) only cover the head. Because of this the neck moves freely providing more opportunity for injury and the head alone takes all the force impact or the brain receives more trauma because the neck provides a medium for a whip-lash movement to take place. The current headgear seeks to not only absorb via padding some of the blunt force trauma it also seeks to provide a method to transfer energy from a head blow to the player's torso, also a feature gained by the axial rotation control and bracing system. No other headgear currently has this feature.
Another problem with head impacts is the weakness of the neck. The current headgear is specifically designed with a head and neck linking system. By extending the helmet to encompass the neck (traditional headgear only covers the skull) the headgear links the head and neck, to some extent, as one unit thereby reducing their ability to move independently. This linking, at least to some extent, mathematically, due to an increase of mass by now adding the neck mass and some rigidity of the head and neck linking system will assist in reducing head impact because it will then take a larger acceleration force to cause damage. No other headgear currently has this feature.
The sport headgear is specifically designed to address supporting the head and neck during an impact. The force absorbent material the axial rotation control and bracing system and head and neck linking system are made of support the head and neck and will move and flex to support the head and neck during an impact. This support is critical in absorbing force and transferring it from the headgear into the torso of the player. No other headgear currently has this support and flex feature.
The sport headgear also has an impact safety warning system. With the study of head impacts in sports you will find the terms Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI) which are injuries sustained by the brain because of the blunt trauma force or impact the brain receives because of a head impact. In short the brain hits the inside of the skull and damages itself due to acceleration movement force. Secondary Impact Syndrome (SIS) is when there is already a brain injury and the player continues to play and then gets hit with another impact that further exacerbates the initial injury causing an even larger injury.
The current invention seeks to reduce TBI and MTBI by the innovations within the design of the helmet and via the impact safety warning system as previously described. The concept of the impact safety warning system is one of intervention to hopefully reduce the occurrences of SIS. One of the major problems with head injuries specifically SIS is that the coach or parent may suspect but not really have a way to tell how hard the player was hit. Sometimes a player can be hit and actually receive a MTBI but no one knows or the player conceals it or thinks they aren't being tough if they admit they are hurt. It is hoped that the impact safety warning system can be used to provide an intervention to reduce MTBI by measuring headgear impact.
Regarding the impact safety warning system it is designed to measure headgear accelerations not brain accelerations. It is an intervention notification system designed to stop play. It is designed to provide immediate feedback to the players and people in the area during training and competition. The headgear also has a data storage capability. Although, it is not the intent of the impact safety warning system to be a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) research tool the data it collects may be beneficial to the study of head impacts and the further development of safety equipment. There are a number of data collection systems designed for measuring “body part” accelerations, this is not the aim of the current invention. The current invention is not removable from the headgear. Additionally, other systems that are TBI research based are not designed to provide access to parents or other possible interested parties that would like to be a receiving station. This is an important distinction to be made as the current invention is seeking to provide intervention against possible SIS and by providing a monitoring system that provides information to parents, coaches and other interested individuals who have a right to know the hope is it will assist in keeping players from playing if there is a suspected possibility of an event that caused harm.
The current invention electronics are designed for: collecting, monitoring, storing, interpreting and transmitting linear and rotational acceleration and force impact data in real time to a remote receiving computing device that are linked to the headgear(s) wirelessly so a judge, coach or parent can then monitor head impact data on the player anytime the headgear is in use and turned on. Providing the receiver has the appropriate software and code access.
It is not intended that the current invention measure brain impacts. The goal is to measure the acceleration of the headgear itself. This can provide information that can be helpful to the safety of the wearer. The current invention has an impact safety warning system which is unique, because it is integrally manufactured within the headgear which overcomes a problem of not using available technology. If the headgear has an impact safety warning system and the player is wearing it that is a large step in providing intervention, therefore the impact safety warning system is manufactured into the headgear and is not removable. The impact safety warning system has two simple functions.
The first is notification that a preset safety head impact threshold has been met or exceeded. This is not an indicator that a closed head injury has taken place but an indicator that a significant impact to the headgear has taken place that may have diverse effect on the brain of the player. The headgear can be programmed for a specific individual and is intended to stay with that one individual. Once the pre-set threshold is met or exceeded a bright flashing light indicator and auditory alarm will be triggered notifying everyone of the significant impact event, so play will be stopped immediately and the player assessed for a possible head injury. This function of the impact safety warning system is important in providing a usable commercial headgear that helps identify potential for head injuries and reduces the chances of coaches putting players back in play thereby exposing them to secondary brain injuries.
The second important function of the impact safety warning system is to provide an immediate ability to stop play so proper medical evaluation can take place when normally no intervention would happen. The current invention allows also for a method to track, on an individual basis, the total amount of head accelerations received and the intensity for an individual player during a single event or through the duration of the season or as long as the player uses the same headgear or until it is reset.
No other headgear has a safety warning system of a flashing light and auditory alarm specifically designed to stop play; imbedded within said headgear. Other, systems that collect data simply collect data or have an option to send data to a judging table where if the data is being watched by a judge who may or may not intervene. The current invention eliminates this monitoring requirement with the instantaneous light and audio warning system, it announces its self Other systems mention that it is important to have an alarm system but do not specify exactly what the components are or how the alarm is done and they certainly are not designed with the intent to stop play.
No headgear acceleration monitoring feature found during the patent search had an electronic system feature where the player has the option to trigger the alarm thereby stopping play. It is an important component of the current invention that the user is able to register a blow that was disorienting, to stop play and get medical assessment if the preset threshold is not reached. This aspect of the current invention is critical in assessing it as an intervention safeguard system and not a research based system. The current invention impact safety warning system is designed such that it is for use on a field of play, it does not monitor body part accelerations but headgear acceleration, it is not intended to monitor brain impacts it is designed to stop play and or allow the player to stop play if they have a significant headgear impact.
Regarding padding and the current literature; one will find there are primarily three types: die-cut foams, injection molding and traditional stuffing. It is not this inventions intent to improve upon any of these padding's but to utilize any and all in combination depending upon the sport to produce a helmet with the axial rotation control and bracing system, head and neck linking system and impact warning system tailored for that sport. The intent on manufacture would be to use traditional methods that do not infringe upon anyone's existing patent claim(s).
The current invention also is shown with a number of different types of face protection methods. The same intent is made here; that is, not to infringe upon any existing claim or special method of face protection but to use traditional methods associated with a number of sports on the current invention platform.
Some examples of improvement in padding would be published U.S. patent application US 20013/0340150 to Brantley which focused on a plurality of cushioning air bag enclosure layers filled with resilient foamed polyurethane. There is no substantial variation to the design of the headgear but a method of implementing an airbag approach to dissipate shock to the user. This patent looks at improving the safety to the wearer's head by improving the shock absorbency of the headgear by creating a new variation of padding. It does not link the neck with the head or transfer any force during impact to the torso or limit movement of the head or neck when under linear or rotational forces. This is what is seen in all headgear improvements regarding padding.
There are some patents that do look at linking the head to the torso to limit linear and rotational force transfer to the head. It is important to note that they lack the electronic safety feature option of the current invention and do not let the player do any type of notification and their method of linking the torso and head are very different from the current invention. Without exception they connect the helmet to a shoulder pad or neck collar arrangement to the torso of the player or a suit worn by the player.
For example U.S. Pat. No. 8,561,217 to Nagely, et al. is a spring three point break away strut system which provides support to the wearer's head by means of a harness assembly about the torso which is connected to the helmet by the spring loaded struts which absorb force to a predetermined velocity threshold before disconnecting the torso harness from the helmet by means of the breakaway struts.
Published U.S. patent application US 20100263110 to Berry uses magnetic couplings, one on the helmet and the other on the football shoulder pads to create an electrical field that is force resistance thereby reducing head whip-lash movement.
In U.S. Pat. No. 8,621,672 to chuback consists of a bubble type helmet comprising a dome portion configured to surround but remain spaced apart from the user's head that affixes to a shoulder pad apparatus similar to a deep sea diving suit. Definitely linking the headgear to the torso however, it lacks head and neck support of the current invention.
Regarding Headgear sensors and monitoring systems U.S. Pat. No. 8,621,673 to Pietrantonio is unique in that its sensors are portable concussion indicators for mounting to a helmet that is configured to indicate impacts relating to different concussion grades as indicated by an identifiable impact capsule. The indicator may be placed with or mounted on the exterior of a helmet. This concept is very common in the field in that the thought is to provide a method to attach to the existing headgear a component that lets you know when a head injury occurs. This is the direct opposite of the current invention idea where the electronics are imbedded within a helmet specifically manufactured for the sport. Pietrantonio's patent does not provide for a monitoring capability just notification. By building the monitoring system into the headgear it reduces the chance that the monitoring system will not be used, not attached to the headgear or left in the coach's office.
Published U.S. patent US 20120210498 to Mack describes a headgear or hard hat with sensors to sense if the headgear is being worn and having at least one optical sensor and transmitter to transmit codes for security access. Mack's patent also has a removable sensor that attaches to the headgear padding for determining the nature of head impacts that also stores the data.
Published U.S. Pat. No. 8,556,831 to Faber et al. is a portable system designed to measure linear and rotational force impacts that is a removable mechanism that can be attached to any number of things such as “helmets, headbands, and in general “headgears”, and sports such as American football and Karate . . . ”. It has similar qualities to the current invention in data collection in that it uses accelerometers but the intent of the use is totally different. The current invention uses accelerometer(s) to measure acceleration movement of the headgear and has an impact safety warning system to warn of a significant impact event to stop play so the player can be medically assessed. The Faber et al patent is a research device that measures the “acceleration of the user's body part” (claim 4). Therefore it is measuring the acceleration of the user's brain or head if it is worn on the head. It is important to note that it has a video camera feature, GPS, and time stamp capabilities all required components of research instruments for measuring actual force impacts on a person's “body part” designed to capture maximum data for study. The Faber et al devise is not intended as an intervention tool because unlike the current invention it lacks a user interface where the user can trigger the alarm thereby indicating a disorienting blow has been received.
Published U.S. Pat. No. 8,554,508 B2 to Crisco, III et al. is similar to the device of Faber in that it describes a portable device that can be placed within existing equipment that uses accelerometers to determine “the magnitude of linear and rotational acceleration of a direction of impact to a body part.” It can also be used to measure MTBI. The language is at first little confusing in that it states “ . . . any reference to a body part is understood to encompass the head and any reference to the head alone is intended to include applicability to any body part.” Cisco, II et al. designed a small research based device that is light weight and can be adapted to measure almost any type of rotational or linear acceleration on a body part of any animal. Within the Summary of the Invention it says “For example, the acceleration and deceleration of birds in flight could be studied with a modified version of the present invention.” Although Crisco's patent shares similarities of data capture with the current invention it is a research tool intended to be able to be used in a great number of settings or used possibly on any creature or dead body of a test animal for testing purposes.
The current invention is only intended to measure accelerations of the headgear during sporting use and is integrally manufactured within said helmet or headgear. It is not manufactured to have versatility to be put on or into other objects. The two prior inventions are clearly research based instruments as are the others in the field, designed with great flexibility to be used to measure most anything moving which creates a clear distinction between their intended use and the current invention design and intended use.
Reebock is currently selling a sensor called Checklight™ a device designed to measure impacts that has a light indicator that goes off at a preset threshold. It is attached to a cloth skull cap. It provides a visual indicator only; green being on and functioning, yellow for if there is a head impact of caution and red for a serious head impact. There is no: data capture feature, data monitoring feature, cumulative head impact data feature and it is not associated with a headgear but can be worn without a helmet or under one. Unlike the current invention it is not helmet based and does not allow individual adjustment of the pre-determined impact threshold. It does change color when a threshold has been met but there is no alarm feature intended to stop play. If the device is under a helmet it may not be readily visible. Because it may be warn under or in conjunction with a helmet or headgear it could register a significant impact, not be visible and since it doesn't have an alarm intervention process the player would continue to play until someone notices the color change which may or may not happen. This system not having an alarm really limits its ability to stop SIS.
X2 Biosystems is currently selling a device called the XPatch which is a device for measuring head impacts. It is small, versatile and is adhered to the player in the same way a band aid is applied with an adhesive patch which holds the XPatch electronic device to the player. This system is an information collection device. It does not provide a warning to stop play nor can the device be monitored in real time or accessed wirelessly, it must physically be placed on a docking station to retrieve data.